Titanic
by castlebeckettalways
Summary: When Richard Castle wins three tickets on board the Titanic, he hardly imagines the events that are about to ensue. He meets Katherine Beckett, a girl trapped in a world that only he can save her from. This is an AU caskett fanfic.
1. Chapter 1

Richard Castle &Katherine Beckett | Titanic

**So, this sort of came to me in a dream. I know it's weird, and yeah, but i figured I'll write a little bit and see how it goes! Remember to review!**

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><p>The ship stood large and sturdy in front of her. The longer she stared at it the more beautiful it became. How many other things in life were like that? How many other things became more and more magnificent every time you saw them?<p>

"We're not here to stare at it, Katherine." She heard Josh say from behind her. She felt his hand slide around her waist, pulling her close to him as their chauffeurs carried their bags towards the big ship.

"I know that." She replied, "But isn't it beautiful?"

"It's a mode of transportation." He snapped, "It's not supposed to be beautiful."

She didn't care what he said. It's huge black hull and 4 smoke stacks took her breath away.

"I did hear it was unsinkable though." He added, "Good to know, since I took my Picasso with us. Wouldn't want that at the bottom of the ocean!"

She was about to ask if he'd prefer _her_ be at the bottom of the ocean when she felt her aunt push her along.

"Hurry, Katherine, we don't want to be here when all the third class people start arriving."

They pushed their way through the crowd, Josh grabbing her and guiding her like she was too pathetic to know how to walk herself.

The inside of the ship was even grander than the outside.

"I pulled a lot of strings to get us onto this ship, Katherine, why do you look like you don't want to be here?"

She wasn't sure where he was coming from. She'd never wanted to explore a place more than she did at that moment… she couldn't imagine her face had looked like she didn't want to be there. As she felt his hand slide away from her side she wondered whether it was _who_ she was there with that had caused that look.

"Shall we find our rooms?" She said before the conversation would turn to the worst.

"Of course." Josh said curtly, "It's best we find them now in case we are unsatisfied and need to switch."

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><p>Richard Castle took another sip of his beer, still staring at the cards in his hand. Next to him, Esposito and Ryan seemed extremely focused on the game as well.<p>

"I fold." One of the men announced, laying his cards on the table.

Richard stared at the prize in the center of the table. Three gleaming tickets lay on top of a pile of quarters and dollars. He looked back down at his hand.

"I'll raise you." He threw in another dollar.

Both Esposito and Ryan folded as well, which didn't really matter, because if Richard won they'd all be boarding the ship together anyways.

The surly looking guy matched him, and they played on, the bet getting higher and higher each time.

"Alright." They announced, "Time to show your cards boys."

Richard's body coursed with adrenaline. This was it… it was all or nothing.

"Two kings." The guy said across from him.

"Two aces." The other one smiled a toothless smile. Richard stared back to his own cards. The look on the guys face he obviously thought he'd just won, and Richard let him have his moment of glory before laying his cards down too.

Ryan and Esposito looked at him eagerly. "Full house!" He cried, slamming the cards on the table.

The other two guys cussed under their breath, but Esposito and Ryan jumped out of their seats, whooping in celebration and beginning to scoop up the money and grabbing the tickets.

"WERE GOING TO AMERICA!" They cried loudly.

The bar tender looked over. "_Titanic_ is going to America… in five minutes!"

"Shit!" Richard laughed and began to push the other two towards the door. There was still some money left on the table that they were trying to grab. "Let's go, let's go!"

The three of them ran, money, tickets and beer in their hands, towards the dock.

"We're going to miss it!" Richard cried as they ran.

The man was just closing off the rope to seal the wooden ramp when they got there.

Richard waved their tickets in his face. "We're here, we have tickets!"

The man sighed, but untied the rope once more and let them on.

"Wohoo!" Richard called as he skipped up the ramp. "We're going home!"

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><p>"It's time for supper, Katherine." Her uncle announced. "Brush your hair and pull your sorest tighter before you come, please."<p>

Katherine rolled her eyes, but did as he said before finding Josh and accompanying him to the dining hall. The room was filled with tables, expensive white tablecloths and polished china. Katherine knew how to act like a first class lady, however, on the inside she felt like she was screaming. Why was nobody hearing her? The whole room should be staring right now. Somehow, she still managed to keep a calm face.

They sat down at their assigned table and her uncle ordered an expensive wine.

"So Katherine, I assume you and Josh's wedding plans are coming along nicely." He commented.

"They are." Katherine smiled fakely, "Out guest list was just confirmed."

Josh nodded, "The invitations will be sent out as soon as we port."

"Good, good." Her uncle approved. "I always knew you'd marry well, Katherine."

A waitress appeared. Everyone at the table ordered various things, all well over-priced.

"I'll have the smoked salmon, and Katherine here will have the lamb."

Katherine felt her heart skip a beat. He'd ordered for her?

When the waitress left, he turned to her, "You like lamb, right sweetie?"

"Love it." She replied shortly, "May I be excused to a moment?"

She didn't wait for a reply; she simply got up from the table, and fled from the room and onto the upper deck. She picked up her dress so she could run, and ran until a guardrail stopped her. She looked out upon the lower deck. People were laughing and children playing. All second and third class people of course. Her aunt and uncle would watch them like they were scum, which is why Katherine would never tell them she had a secret desire to be one of them. She breathed heavily, her feet sore from running so far. She knew Josh and the others would be waiting for her, but she couldn't stop watching all of the happy people. Had she seen and first class patrons even smile yet? She doubted it.

Suddenly, three men appeared on the deck. They were laughing and doing a sort of jig. They ran to the front of the boat, the tallest and biggest one standing right at the bow, yelling across the ocean. It was like she was watching it in slow motion. He screamed, "I'm the king of the world!" And outstretched his arms, the wind blowing through his brown hair and the light shining in his blue eyes. She could only see the back of him, but something about the way he stood made it seem like the whole ocean was his. She wished she could look out at the world the way he did, with infinite possibilities. She was stuck in a world that could fit into a shoebox. It was full of wedding flowers and impressing important people… but she didn't think she'd ever actually screamed at the top of her lungs like the man at the bow was doing now. She'd wanted to. She'd wanted to be able to throw up her hands and celebrate. But she couldn't.

Just as she thought this, the man turned around. He caught her eyes, and gave her a sort of half smile. She felt her insides jump out of her chest. Her heart was pumping overtime. Had she ever felt like this before? She couldn't diagnose the feeling. He turned away, and she so badly wanted to descend the stairs and go talk to him. But she knew supper was waiting, a nice plate of lamb, which she hated, so she turned back, the sight of the man disappearing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

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><p><strong>So, this chapter basically sets up the plot for the rest of the story. I tried to parallel the actually show by using some likes themes, etc, since this is so obviously different from the actual story. Remember to review!**

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><p>Richard lay on a bench, looking up at the stars. There were so many of them, he wondered if anyone had actually ever counted. The cool fresh air filled his lungs, and his notebook, the only possession he'd brought aboard, lay on his chest. He considered writing a poem about the boat, but there was another poem surfacing in his brain, and he couldn't quite pinpoint its inspiration. All of the sudden, a woman flew past him, wearing a very expensive red gown and high heels that clicked along the deck as she went. He sat up, putting out his cigarette and turning the corner to follow her. When he did, he saw she was climbing over the back railing, now on the other side, only her two hands holding the barrier keeping her from falling into the ice-cold water.<p>

"Ma'am?" He asked quietly, not wanting to startle her.

She turned, tears streaming down her face. He recognized her. He'd seen her standing on the deck the night previous… her beautiful brown curls were now flying in the wind.

"I'll jump." She warned, "Don't come any closer."

Castle took a step forward, "What's your name?" He asked.

"Katherine Beckett." She replied haughtily.

"Do people call you Kate?" He asked.

She gave a sarcastic laugh, "No."

"I'm Richard Castle." He said.

"Do people call you Rick?" She spat his line back at him.

"Nah, everyone calls me Castle."

"Your last name?" She asked as if it was alien to her. "What's the point of that?"

"What's the point of hanging off the back of the boat, miss?"

She straightened up. "Leave me alone." She huffed.

"I don't think I can." He said, "You see, if I walk away and you fall—or jump- I'll feel terrible for the rest of my life. Your really wanna burden me with that?"

"I'd be dead, so I'm sure I wouldn't mind." She replied.

"You know how cold that water is, right Beckett?"

"_Beckett_?" She cried, "I told you my names Katherine."

"I heard you." He laughed, "But I just think Beckett has a sort of ring to it."

She rolled her eyes, "Fine, call me Beckett. Just leave me alone."

"Fine." He said, "But I have to warn you before I go, that water is ice cold."

"How do you know?" She sniffed.

"Trust me, Beckett." He smirked, "Or don't, and find out for yourself."

"You think you're so smart, don't you?"

"Nah." He smiled a little, "I mean, I'm not the one who's going to die if she takes a wrong step right now… but…"

"Fine." She snapped, "Help me back over."

He reached out and she grabbed his hand. He could feel electric pulses shoot up his arm from the moment they touched. She turned slowly, and then put one foot on the first rung. By the time she'd made it over, both of their hearts had jumped nearly out of their chests with fright.

She stood up straight and tried to collect herself. "Well, thank you Castle. I'll see you around, I suppose."

"I'm in third class, Beckett. You won't be seeing me anywhere." He tipped his head and began to walk away. She was about to turn away too, but instead, she bolted back towards him, grabbing his arm.

"You should, come to dinner with me and my family. You know, to thank you for saving my life."

"You wouldn't have jumped, Kate." He laughed, "You might have slipped… but I didn't save your life."

"How do _you_ know I wouldn't have jumped?"

"I just do." He shrugged.

"You don't even know me!" She cried.

"Someone you loved died recently." He guessed, "A father… sibling, maybe."

Her face softened. "Excuse me?"

"Anyways, your still grieving, only everyone else around you seems to have moved on and you can't figure out why you're not over it yet."

She just stared at him blankly. He was getting it right, he knew that. He'd known it ever since he saw her watching him from the upper deck.

"How'd you do that?" She asked.

"Do what?"

"How'd you know, about my mother?" Her voice cracked.

"I'm good at studying people." He shrugged, "It was all over your face."

"No one else seems to notice." She mumbled.

"Have you ever wondered whether or not they're looking?"

She looked away, trying to compose herself the best she could. "I need to get back to my fiancé now. It was nice meeting you, Castle."

"Fiance?" He asked. "Really?"

"What that was one part of me you hadn't profiled?" She asked.

"I just would have figured you for a girl who doesn't really need a man by her side."

He was right about that, "It doesn't matter what you think." She huffed.

"Maybe we should go for a walk, get to know each other."

She considered this, "It was nice meeting you, Castle."

"That's too bad." He laughed, "It coulda been great."

She leaned in, he could smell her expensive upper class perfume. "You have no idea."

And with that, she turned away. He watched her turn the corner, and couldn't help a grin creep up on his face in spite of himself.

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><p>"Jeez, I'm starving." Esposito grumbled, holding his stomach.<p>

"We could go buy lunch, bro." Ryan offered.

"Spend the last five dollars we have to our name?" He laughed, "No thank you."

Castle lay quietly on his lower bunk, "Why don't we just go take a look at the kitchens?"

"Steal?" Ryan echoed, "I don't know if that's a good idea…"

"Well, I'm going, Javi, you in?"

Javier looked up at him, "Of course."

They both turned to the third man.

Ryan rolled his eyes, "The trouble you two get me into…"

They headed towards the lower deck, where the lower classes usually stayed. Only this time, they climbed the staircase towards the upper decks, a first class hangout.

They tried to be as discrete as possible, but a whole bunch of rich folks couldn't help but notice their dirty clothing and unwashed faces. Castle wondered whether he'd run into Beckett again… the thought of her hadn't left his mind since they met.

They got to the back door to the kitchens, and Esposito opened it just crack to see if anyone was inside. There were a few sue chefs, all of whom seemed very wrapped up in their work. He nodded, and crawled inside. Castle and Ryan followed him. They grabbed the first loaf of bread that they saw, and Ryan motioned for them to get out, when Castle spotted. A sparkling bottle of champagne sat on a shelf only a few feet away. It was too much to resist, and he began to crawl towards it, Ryan and Esposito whispering for him to come back.

"Well, well, well…" A voice said from behind him, "What have we here?"

Castle froze, and he felt a hand grab the back of his shirt and yank him upwards. He now faced an unpleasant looking man, whose teeth were stained yellow from too many cigarette's and breath smelt like a mixture of tomato soup and garlic.

"Trying to steal from the upper class kitchens, are we?"

Castle decided it was best not to lie, so responded with, "We found the found more satisfactory up here."

"I bet you did." The man chuckled. He then turned to grab Esposito and Ryan, but found that Esposito had already dashed out the door and only managed to grab the back of Ryan's shirt before he too escaped.

"C'mon boys. I have someone who will want to talk to you about this."

Ryan looked at Castle and mouthed, "I'm going to _kill _you."

Ryan and Castle were tossed into a room only a few minutes later. They faced a stern looking man, who wore glasses and was reading the paper with his feet on the desk.

"Caught them trying to steal some expensive al'hol in the kitchens, sir." The garlic man said.

The other one raised his eyebrows, "Thank you for bringing them to me, you can go back to work now."

The garlic man disappeared and Ryan and Castle both sat down in the two chairs across from the man's desk.

"Get up, I don't want your filth on my chairs."

They both stood quickly, not wanting any further trouble. For some reason, Castle couldn't help but wonder is Esposito had escaped with the loaf of bread, for his stomach still grumbled loudly.

"Well, I'd be best to throw you off this boat boys… but seeing as that's not possible, I have another form of punishment for you."

They couldn't imagine what this man could think of, but none of the possibilities seemed very pleasant.

"I have two upper-class families that requested full-time servants." He said, "You will be appointed to them, without pay, for the rest of the time you spend aboard this ship."

Castle's heart lifted. That wasn't _too_ bad.

"I will expect you look a little more presentable when you go, maybe we'll have someone grab you something else to wear."

They nodded, and he told them to go find a man called Montgomery, whose show them to their families.

They left the room, "Thanks, Castle." Ryan murmured, "Now we get to spend the next week catering to some rich bastards."

"Would you rather walk the plank?" Castle answered.

"Damn Esposito got away." Ryan huffed, "You ain't supposed to leave bro's behind like that."

"We'll kill him later." Castle laughed.

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><p>Montgomery was a lot nicer than the rest of the people they'd come in contact with that day. He gave them black suits to wear, and then beckoned for them to follow him.<p>

"Alright…" He looked at both of them, and then seemingly randomly selecting Ryan, pointed at him, "You go down that hall and knock on door number 54, tell 'em you were appointed their servant."

Ryan nodded, and bid Castle goodbye and good luck before disappearing down the hallway.

"Alright, you're going to one of the richest families on this boat, sir. I'd recommend keeping to yourself and doing what you're told, as they could probably have to off this boat and swimming to shore in about five minutes if they wanted to."

Castle was about to say that he might rather that, when Montgomery added, "There is Josh, right over there. He's the one who requested you… Go tell 'em that you're—."

"Appointed servant, I know." Castle finished and headed over towards the unpleasant looking man.

"Excuse me sir… I've been sent to your service, I—"

Josh interrupted him, "Finally, a full time servant…" He grumbled, "Follow me, I have something for you to do."

He lead Castle around a series of hallways and stopped at a grand looking door, swinging it open.

"Honey! They sent us a servant!" He called. The upper class room was shiny and golden from head to toe. Its living room was bigger than three lower class rooms put together. And each lower class room slept five people.

A woman rounded the corner, and he heard her suck in a gulp of air. He looked up, and met her eyes. They were the same beautiful brown that they had been last night.

"Castle?" She gasped before she realized what she was saying.

"Beckett?" He replied, stunned.

"You know this man?" Josh asked incredulously.

She stared at him for a long moment, "Sorry, no, he just warned me that the lower deck was slippery last night."

Castle didn't look away. She was as beautiful as the first time he'd seen her.

"I can't imagine why you'd have been on the lower deck…" Josh trailed off, "However, he's our servant now, and I'd like him to attend to you."

Beckett opened her mouth to speak, but didn't manage a sentence before Josh closed the door and left the room once more.

"We meet again." Castle smirked, and she looked absolutely floored.

"You are like a two year old on a sugar rush, _totally_ incapable of taking anything seriously." She stuck her nose up, "I can't see how this will work out."

He raised his eyebrows, "Oh c'mon, it'll be fun."


End file.
